Another earlier painting.
If sparrows were bankers
An early painting I wanted to add to the site.
BIRD IN THE LANDSCAPE
A strong first day has meant another 3 day turn around. I am becoming more efficient though that isn’t an appropriate approach to art. I am not turning out tins of beans.
Anyway, I am very pleased with the painting. I was intending to move away from this subject but it has a strange attraction for me. If I do expand my horizons it will only be a short walk into the garden, I think there is a lot of potential there.
The painting is finished.
Bird in the landscape. At the end of Day 3.
BIRD IN A LANDSCAPE
A more decisive title and a clearer frame of mind, all very positive. The stripes had to go as did some of the more graphic elements. Although I have been working through a sea of mud the picture has improved.
There is always that bit of apprehension when you compare todays photo with yesterdays and its always a relief when your days efforts have not been for nothing.
Progressing well.
Bird in a landscape. At the end of day 2.
BIRD
I am certainly keeping my options open with such a vague title. Not quite sure where this one is going, it is quite illustrative and decorative and I think that is where this painting is heading.
Bird. At the end of Day 1.
AN EARLY FINISH?
It’s only day 3, I shouldn’t be finished and yet I think I am. My only doubt would be I was intending to put more detail in the bird, but I am not sure it needs it.
I almost omitted the bird altogether. I can see there is a possibility of making paintings using my garden as a starting point so maybe in the next one I should try.
Anyway, this painting is finished.
Moonlit garden. At the end of Day 3.
A GLOOMY DAY
The first 90% of todays painting was an uninspired struggle. I think it was a combination of lockdown fatigue and a gloomy day of constant rain that dampened my mood. However, things slowly turned around and I now think I have sorted out most of the difficulties in this painting. It still has some way to go but I am pleased how it is progressing.
Moonlit garden. At the end of Day 2.
INFINITE POSSIBILITIES
That’s always a good place to start. This picture is intriguing, notably because birds don’t come out at night! A good start for Day 1, its already giving me a good indication of how its going to develop.
Moonlit garden. At the end of Day 1.
FINAL ROUND
This almost feels like a new painting. It even has a new title. I felt that the painting could be rescued but it would need a radical turn of events to pull it round. Anyway, I was determined to see it through and I am now very pleased I did. A well spent Sunday afternoon, the painting is now finished.
Garden with stepping stones. At the end of Day 5.
MORE EFFORT
Felt the need to make a bigger effort today to move the painting forward. The light and the form of the leaves makes a bit more sense and overall the painting is coming together.
You can tell if your losing a grip of a painting if you allude to a particular time of the day and it doesn’t ring true. I still think the ‘early morning’ title still holds.
Garden, early morning. At the end of Day 3.
PLAY INTERRUPTED
This is not a good time of the year for painting. It is now Tour de France and we are into the final week, the mountain stages.
I will use this as an excuse until Sunday. After that I will come up with another excuse to explain my low productivity.
Garden, early morning. At the end of Day 2
BLIND FAITH
My preparation consists of some basic props and a vague notion of what I am trying to do. I have never put much time into preparatory sketching.
That’s like setting the sat nav for a drive in the country. I would rather set off and be prepared to get lost for a while, discovering new routes and sites along the way.
Stylistically these pictures may vary over time. I still think I am throwing everything into the mix to see how things fall.
Garden, early morning. At the end of Day 1.
BEFORE BREAKFAST
The shortest days painting I have ever had. Completed less than an hour before breakfast. Just needed a few tweaks and now I am happy with it.
Bird in the landscape. Finished.
BIRD IN THE LANDSCAPE
Taking a dose of my own medicine from yesterday’s preachy sermon I have amended my formulaic titling.
This painting seems to merit the change in title. I am seeing the orange ‘horizon line’ as the top of a garden wall. The green line looks like a formal ( man made) boundary, a lawn edge maybe? It is also a device to create space.
This does notify a shift towards something new, but I think progress will be my usual zig-zag, back and forth routine.
The painting is almost finished.
Bird in the landscape. At the end of Day 3.
CHANGE
If you believe that your art should always be developing then you have to be willing to follow your instincts. Sometimes you have uncertainty that something may not work, but you have to try.
If you believe that what you are doing right now is not the best work you will ever produce then this means your work has to change.
This is all part of the journey. If you know what your work will look like in a years time, then you are just repeating a formula.
Change and the courage to change is what makes art exiting.
Bird in a tree 23. At the end of Day 2.
WARBLER
Despite appearances this painting uses the same species as ‘Bird in a tree 22’. I am having to learn some birds names. Not through any great interest, but if I am googling for this bird, up to now it has been ‘black & white bird’, which is not very specific.
Anyway, promising start.
Bird in a tree 23. At the end of Day 1.
SPOT THE DIFFERENCE
I was in two minds yesterday as to whether the painting was finished. I even posted yesterdays painting to Instagram as a ‘finished’ painting. I looked at it this morning and decided it needed just a bit more work. Its always a difficult call when a painting is so close to being finished. Do you take a chance that you may lose what you have?
Anyway, I have kept yesterdays ‘Day 3.5’ on the website as a comparison. In my view it was worth the extra work and it has a bit more quality.
The painting is now finished.
Bird in a tree 22. At the end of Day 4.
CONCEPTUAL ART?
This picture needed a dynamic punch to move it forward. There also needed to be an explanation for the way the bird has been painted. By introducing a strongly defined light it suggests the head of the bird is in the light, whilst the rest is in shadow.
An unexpected thought, and more contentious, is that the strong architectural elements of the flat background suggest a man made environment which is at odds with nature. Its an interesting thought, but just from a formal aspect, I like the treatment of the background.
This painting looks slightly unfinished?, but that has some appeal. I will decide tomorrow.
TOO TONAL
I decided the bird was too tonal. So I started introducing some off -white, part way through the ‘repainting’ I decided I didn’t want to recolour the whole bird. Now I have an effect that is part painting, part drawing. Anyway, I like the effect, though it needs a little more subtlety to work properly. Comparing it to Day 2, it was the right decision.
Bird in a tree 22. At the end of Day 3.
SUBTLE SHIFTS
This bird consists of 2 distinct tones and getting the form and light correct is going to call for a lot of determination and patience. Looking at Day 1 I could see that the dark tone was too blue for the effect I am seeking in this painting. I like the boldness of the green leaves though they are too crude at the moment.
Anyway, the painting is progressing.
Bird in a tree 22. At the end of Day 2.